Setting Everything Ablaze
by BriannD
Summary: Set in the world of Remnant, in a time long long ago, at the time of a wary Faunus era. Yang and Qrow seem to have taken lodging in a town near a forest, and one day, our young Yang, who has yet to become a Huntress and has yet to learn much of the world, finds herself in a raveled mess with a mysterious Adam.


**Setting Everything Ablaze**

The sound of fists landing, and feet scuffling filled the air as she walked by. She wore a light brown overall with brown shorts, and had brown shoes with brown socks. However, her hair was bright gold and hung over both her shoulders as ponytails. Her lilac eyes darted back and forth through the bushes as if to detect the source of the sound.

"Hey kid, where are you?" She turned around, towards the voice calling for her.

"Yang?" She cleared her throat and then called back out to the husky and rough voice, "I'm right here!"

"Come on back! It's getting late out!"

"Give me a sec!" Yang turned her back towards her uncle, and jolted in the other direction, following the sounds she heard. They were getting louder, and louder, and soon enough, she felt like she was there.

"Hah! Take that you monster!" It was a young voice, much like her own, Yang thought. She pushed aside the bushes, and peaked out at the scene. She couldn't believe what she saw. Three boys, a bit older than her, were ganging up on a single boy who also looked to be their age.

"You're not going to make it through the Academy at this rate!" One of the attacking boys said. Yang had heard about the combat schools before, and her uncle, Qrow was preparing for her to study at Signal soon.

"Freak!" Another boy said as he drove his foot into the side of the boy. Yang didn't know what to do, she was alone, and much younger than the three of them. However, simply staring at the scene made her afraid, she panicked and her eyes dilated as they locked onto the expression of the attacked boy. She took this chance to study him, his hair a blood red, and his clothing's tattered. He brought his arms up to defend him, but even that wasn't enough as the three boys relentlessly attacked him on the ground.

"Come on! Fight, you beast!" Yang noticed the horns on top of the boy's head. They were a polished white, and was quite short for what they were. Yang looked around near the bushes, and found a stick nearby. She picked it up, her hands shaking, and cleared her throat. Her breathing quickened, and she struggled to keep it steady. She didn't want to be reckless anymore, she thought. But, she just couldn't sit there and watch without at least trying. She almost got the person she loved the most killed, and she knew that getting herself hurt wouldn't be any better either. However, she was fierce, and a fire lit within her, and she saw a desire to help. She held onto the stick, as hard as she could despite her shaking hand, and prepared to jump from the bushes.

"Stop." The words weren't said. Yang heard no audio queue to tell her body to stop moving, but it did. Her entire being was held frozen in place, and she knew why. She was staring straight at the Faunus boy, who was also looking back at her. His eyes told her to stop. He needed to endure it. However, Yang's anger grew, she gritted her teeth, and tightened her grip on the stick. Her hands began reddening, and she knew that if she gripped any harder, she would break the stick. Without realizing it, her hair began emanating a red glow, and her eyes began taking a fiery red. The change in color was very light, but at the same time, it made her feel empowered. Yang ran out from the bushes and rushed straight into the three boys.

"Stop!" Yang yelled as she got close. The three boys nonchalantly looked up at the single girl who presented herself to them. Despite being younger, her fiery aura and crazed look in her eyes instilled a strange fear in them.

"We don't have time this," one of the boys said as he began walking back, leading the rest of them. Yang slowly lowered her eyes, her anger subsiding, and dropped the stick. She was glad that she didn't need to fight.

"Are you okay?" Yang said to the Faunus boy. He didn't answer. His arms were still over his head but once he calmed down, he lowered his arms and revealed scars over both of his eyes. Yang didn't react to it as much as she thought. She wanted to ask about them, but knew it wasn't the time.

"Can you stand?" Yang said as she extended her arm out to the boy. The boy studied her intently, looking for a crack in her armor, looking for signs of malice. But he couldn't find it. He was relieved, but he knew not to lower his guard. He had seen too much, and been through too much to know to lower his guard. He got up, ignoring Yang's gesture of help and brushed himself off. His hands and legs were bruised, and he could barely move, but he tried his best to put up a stand.

"So you can stand," Yang said with a small smile. The Faunus boy was taken aback by the notion. It had been so long since he's remembered a human genuinely smiling at him. It was strange.

"I'm Yang." There was no response, which prompted Yang to think of another approach. She thought fast.

"In that case," Yang said as she picked up her stick and pointed it at the boy, "If you don't talk, then I'll make you!" The Faunus boy couldn't do anything in his state, and simply looked at her with a nervous expression. He was already too tattered and tired to put up resistance, even to a little girl like Yang.

"Adam," the boy said.

"Good." Yang dropped her stick, and Adam eased his body.

"If you want, I can get my uncle to look at you."

"Why? Is he some kind of freak?" Adam's line of thinking was more on the side of Faunus trafficking and abuse.

"No, my uncle Qrow is really cool. He could look at your injuries."

"Is he human?" Yang thought about Adam's question. It was a strange question to ask, Yang thought. It was filled with a bitter taste that Yang couldn't quite understand, but Adam had a reason to ask.

"Yeah, he's human," Yang answered.

"Then no."

"Why not?" Before answering, Adam put on a smug smile, and leaned down to reach for the stick.

"Because, even if you show me kindness here, who knows what your uncle will do. Maybe this is even a set up. I know your kind too well. A bunch of likeminded walls if you ask me." Adam picked up the stick, his arms and legs aching the entire time. His grip was weak, but he pointed it at Yang nonetheless, with great pride in his eyes and great strength in his words, he said, "I'm not anyone's pet. I'm not anyone's toy either. I'm going to a combat school, and I'll show you Humans what it's like to be inferior. There's nothing stopping me."

"I don't know what you mean," Yang said innocently, her eyes fixated on the stick, and her body tensing up again. She had no reason to hate Faunus, nor did she care for the politics of the world. All she wanted was to find her mother, and to protect her sister. But she knew she was weak, and she knew she had to find strength, that was why she wanted to help, she thought.

"You can play dumb all you want," Adam paused, and a new thought arose in his mind, something more to entice Yang, "No, that's not it. Maybe you're uncle Qrow was the one who said it. Who said that we're less than you Humans, and that we should be treated like animals. Maybe he taught you to kill us, to detest us, to throw us."

"No, my uncle would never say that!" Yang began panicking, and Adam was happy to see that.

"You've been fed a bunch of lies all this time, you're not to blame."

"No! My uncle never said that!"

"But now it's time for you to learn, and the only person to blame is your uncle." Adam lunged the stick towards Yang, who's hair began emanating red, and who's eyes began turning red.

"Don't you dare say anything bad about my uncle!" Yang screamed out as she grabbed the stick with her hands and snapped it in half. Her breathing fluctuated, and her face contorted into an angry expression. She had no reason to attack Adam, and simply watched him as his face grew into that of surprise. However, it wasn't long for the exhaustion to kick in, and his ailing body soon fell to the ground. Yang lowered her expression, slowing her breathing, and nearly collapsed herself.

"Yang!" Qrow ran into the scene, and picked Yang up before she fell to the ground. She was barely conscious, and could only muster a few words, "Adam... boy... help."

"Damn it, you used your semblance, didn't you," Qrow said to himself.

"I'll need another drink after this," Qrow remarked as he placed Yang behind him.

"Adam?" Qrow thought, and then noticed the collapsed boy on the ground. He sighed, and reached over to pick him up as well, making good note of his eyes and horns.

"Make that two drinks."

"Look's like your finally awake." Qrow said to Yang as she began waking up. Yang was in her room now, with only a single candle giving off a dim light. Her head ached as she tried to get up.

"Where is he?" Yang asked.

"The boy? Adam, was it? He's in the guest room."

"Oh," Yang said, slightly relieved.

"He'll be fine. His injuries aren't anything serious, not even close to the damage this old pint can do," Qrow said as he raised his flask for a drink.

"What happened anyway?" Qrow asked. Yang looked over to inspect him, he was wearing a grey dress shirt, along with black dress pants. His red cloak, which Yang found quite appealing, was not on him. His spiky hair was a light grey, and fell down near his eyes. His weapon wasn't on his body, which gave Yang an unsettling feeling.

"It was a fight."

"A fight? In the forest?"

"Three other boys, students at a combat school, I think, were ganging up on him." Qrow lowered his flask. He walked over to the table in her room, and leaned back, making sure not to touch the candle.

"That wasn't a fight, Yang. We both know that. I fight Grimm, you fight waking up in the morning," Qrow paused, and watched Yang smile at his words.

"But that wasn't a fight."

"I know."

"You knew, so you joined? You helped Adam?"

"They ran away when they saw me, must have ran scared."

"The only person scared of you is me, when you're off dragging your sister on suicide missions." Yang looked down, her eyes tearing up, and her anger filling up inside again. Qrow's expression remained expressionless, and he simply sighed.

"Look, I won't always be here to bail you out of everything. That's why you're learning to fight. Getting yourself hurt before then won't do you any good."

"I know, but I had to."

"You had to what? Go and defend him? From three boys who you couldn't handle? You want to be a Huntress? Learn to hunt Grimm, not Humans."

"If I left him, he would have-"

"Been completely fine. He's a Faunus. They aren't going to kill him and spark another revolution. That time is over. Some people still hate them, but not far enough that they would seriously hurt them."

"I'm sorry." Qrow sighed, and placed one hand over his hair.

"I'm not saying that what you did was bad. Before you can fight for others, you need to fight for yourself. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't think about it."

"I'll be more careful next time."

"They must have hauled their butts out of their real fast though right?" Qrow's tone went back to his usual stride, a casual and suave voice that Yang was familiar with.

"Yeah, the moment they saw me they knew they had no chance!" Yang's tone had shifted to a more cheerful one as well, matching Qrow's nature.

"Hah! If I were them, I would have ran tail as well!" Yang smiled at her uncle's praise.

"But not because I knew I had no chance." Yang gave him a questioning look, and tilted her head to emphasis it. Before finishing his thought, Qrow scuttled over towards Yang.

"You would defeat me with your looks alone. The most beautiful and cutest little thing in all of Remnant," Qrow said as he rustled Yang's hair. Yang detested by shaking her head at Qrow's hand, and her face began growing red in embarrassment, "Come on uncle Qrow!" Yang protested.

"You have power, Yang. You just haven't found it yet." Qrow's hand stopped, and rested on top of Yang's head.

"Well, I got to go. Keep watch over Adam for me."

"Where are you going?"

"Remember that lady you saw the other day?"

"The blonde one?" Qrow waited, and thought about it.

"Yeah, her too." Qrow walked over to the doorway, and left, leaving Yang to question his plans for the night. It left her a disgusted aftertaste. Yang got up from her bed and made her way over to the guest room. She felt like knocking, but for some reason, didn't feel the need to. Instead, she pressed her hand on the doorknob, and slowly turned. Yang half expected Adam to jump out at her and take her hostage. He had threatened her once, who's to say, she thought.

"Hello?" Yang said as the door opened. Adam was still asleep, or appeared so. His eyes were closed, seeming to be with his two scars. He was hidden under the blanket, but Yang wasn't convinced there wasn't a trap for her. The room was dimly lit by a candle, which Yang found quaint. She walked over, and blew the candle out, leaving her vision darkened.

Suddenly, Yang heard rustling. The sheets beside her were overturned, but Yang couldn't see. She tried her best to focus and listen for more movement, but the room was dead. Something within her thought back to Qrow, "They call this a bat trap. Grimm don't need eyes, they feel your negative emotions. If you can't see, feel." Yang tried, but she couldn't feel anything.

"In the air. Waves move, a flick of a feather, a Grimm's hair." Then, Yang felt it. Movement. She released her body, relieved that she could move and turned around to grab Adam's hand.

"I'm not the type of person to just sit around."

"Like before?" Yang nodded. Her grip loosened, and she called out again, "Talk in someplace we can see?"

"I can see just fine." Yang considered his words, which prompted Adam to continue, "Faunus. I can't explain it either, but everything is just so clear at night."

"Like Grimm?" Adam was taken back by the analogy but smiled, "Yeah."

"Why'd you do it?" Adam asked.

"Saving you?"

"I didn't need saving. I didn't need you."

"I know."

"I even tried to attack you. Twice."

"I know."

"So why-"

"Because, I was scared." Yang cleared her throat. A deep rooted anger began stirring inside her. She felt it this time, her hair glowing, and her eyes changing. It's why she felt so controlled.

"I once almost got someone I really cared about killed."

"Grimm?" Yang nodded.

"Luckily, uncle Qrow came and saved us. But, I was weak. Defenceless, tired, and rash. I couldn't do anything."

"So I'm your compromise?" Yang didn't nod, nor did she say anything. She simply stood there, looking off into nothingness. It's what she thought the inside of a Grimm might have been.

"I'm pretty damn selfish if you ask me." His words were sharp and stung hard to Yang.

"But that's not my main concern," Adam paused, "You see these?" Yang didn't think of the question and it took Adam a few seconds to realize how inept the question was.

"And my vision. All parts of being Faunus. You know what you people call Faunus? Monsters, low lives, and pests. But I'm-"

"Just like any other boy." Adam stopped, surprised at what Yang had said.

"Faunus or not, I would have saved you either way," Yang added.

"You were compromising, you had no-"

"I had a choice!" Yang's tone increased. Her hair was glowing, a vibrant glow, and her eyes were emanating red. Adam was on full guard, not fully aware of what Yang was capable of.

"I could have walked away. Left you to get beaten. I didn't need to compromise on you. I've been compromising my whole life."

"Then why didn't you?" It didn't take Yang long to respond. She knew exactly what she wanted.

"Because you're a person, a person who was in need of help."

"That's just y-"

"I know. I'm saying you needed help, and I'm also saying that it was just my judgement. But I'm going to be a Huntress. I need to make these calls." Adam was visibly shaken at her revelation, but Yang would never see it.

"Fine," Adam said, his tone shifting to that of defeat and resentment, "No more questions. I want to be a Huntsman too. I just don't understand you."

"What about me that you don't understand?"

"Saving a Faunus."

"It's simple. I said it so before, right?" Adam looked down to the wooden floor boards. Yang's glowing hair and eyes had long dissipated.

"I'm not just like any other boy. I'll never be." Adam began walking towards the door, movements Yang felt and followed.

"Where you heading off to?" They arrived at the door way, Adam standing, and thinking. His hands reached over his scarred eyes, and for a moment, he felt like talking, explaining what he had went through, and why he was who he was. But that moment was fleeting. She was a human, he thought. He was a Faunus, a humble swindler, and a clever crook. Perhaps, he was only but a rock within a hay stack. Or perhaps, he was a needle in a pond of water. Adam would have preferred a moon among moons. He wasn't a poet, neither was Yang.

"Adam!" Yang called out as Adam continued to walk off. He didn't stop this time, and simply went over to the door of the home, and walked out, into the dead of the night. Yang was worried, Qrow wouldn't be back until later, and she felt the need to follow him, to make sure he was safe.

"Adam?" Yang called out as she ran to the door way, peering off into the dead streets. Yang could barely see, if not for a few street lights and the shine of the moon. She tried her best to scan the town, looking for Adam's distinct red hair, and that was when she saw him.

"Hold on!" Yang called out, but Adam simply turned the corner, behind another home, and walked off. Yang gave chase. It was dangerous for her, to be stumbling around in the dark, but she felt the need to. It wasn't a compromise, she thought.

"Ah!" Yang screamed out as she bumped into a woman in the dark.

"Sorry!" Yang quickly followed up. Yang couldn't make out much features of the woman she bumped into, but she could tell that she had black hair that fell to her shoulders. She was tall, and slender, but her age was a mystery to her.

"Careful where you step." Her voice was alluring, very alluring, but Yang would never understand how alluring and sharp her voice was. It was as clear as glass and at the same time wrapped around her like a tight rope. It was captivating, but Yang had no time to be captivated. She ran off, across the town, searching desperately for Adam. The town's lights were growing, more houses had door lights, more street lights were on, and the scent of Dust was in the air. She was at the edge of town now, the forest in sight, but luckily for her, she didn't need to travel far.

"Didn't expect to see you here," a boy said to Adam. It was one of the boys earlier, who were beating on Adam. Yang cleared her throat, and tensed her hand. She quickly searched the ground for a weapon, and managed to find a branch. It was fragile, probably only able to withstand a single blow, but she picked it up anyway, and braced herself.

"I don't have time to waste on you," Adam replied.

"Why the hurry? Just take it easy. We're all friends, right?" The boy laughed, along with the others. All three of them were here.

"Come on, play with us. Like you play with that little cat you're hiding." The boy's voice shifted to a conniving tone. They all smirked evil smirks, and Yang, who was well hidden from them, was getting anxious the more she waited. She promised herself that she would only get involved if it looked out of hand.

"Shut up!" Adam yelled back.

"Oh. Should that be the tone you take with your fellow Huntsmen?" The boys remained relatively calm. They were planning something, Yang thought.

"Just get out of my way." Adam pushed past them and was on the edge of the forest.

"We know where she is," one boy said. This prompted Adam to turn around and force his hand onto the boy's shirt, which failed as the boy pushed him back, onto the ground. Yang tensed her grip, but continued to wait.

"Relax. We haven't done anything to your little beast friend." One of the boys pulled on Adam's hair, and brought him to his face, "But make the wrong move, and we will. To both of you."

"Get off me!" Adam pushed his hand away and got back on his feet. His eyes were filled with worry, but he tried his best to mask it. He was worried, and afraid, and he tried his best to keep his body from shaking.

"Look, let's get down to it. We know who you are, Adam. We know what you did."

"What are you talking about?"

"We've been tracking you ever since that day. We haven't forgotten what you did to our friend, and we will make you pay." Adam knew exactly what they were talking about, but didn't want to remember it. He chalked it up to delusions, but it was the right thing, and the only thing he could have done to survive, he thought.

"You're talking about that fire, right?" Adam decided to give in, it was the fastest way out of it, he thought, "I remembered a few Humans were caught up in it, didn't think I would have killed any though." Yang was shocked at what Adam had said, almost gasping and giving away her position. However, Adam had long noticed her presence.

"They were all, pests," Adam arrogantly said.

"Shut up!" The boy raised his fist and punched Adam, giving him a slight stagger, but not enough to push him down.

"You Humans are all so dumb, and all so ignorant. I practically walked into the town, took what I needed, and grazed what I hated. You guys were nothing but the Dust in my hair."

"Keep talking and we will kill you!"

"It's funny really. When I set that fire, at first I needed to do that to start a distraction, to run away. I was in a tight spot, taking more than I can bite. I was no less than a Grimm that day, feeding off of your negative emotions, using that to fuel me. And then the fire happened."

"What are you going on about?"

"You see, after the fire started, and the screams erupted, I began enjoying it. I began enjoying your Human feet scramble about, like a horde of Grimm had waltzed its way into your lives. How weak." The boy finally snapped, and rushed towards Adam. Adam prepared himself, but what he didn't prepare for was Yang to break her position and slam the branch straight into the boy. The branch snapped, barely doing much but take the boy's attention away from Adam.

"You again!?" The boy yelled.

"Stop!" Yang yelled back. The boy's patience had long but run, and he raised his fist towards Yang. As the fist fell down towards her, almost instinctively, Yang raised her hand to stop it, her hair burning slightly, and her eyes glowing. The boy was afraid now, and backed off, watching Yang, and studying what had happened. Yang stood fearless, in front of Adam, and in front of the band of boys.

"You can't hurt Adam anymore!"

"What are you doing?" Adam asked.

"I'm not saving you. I'm saving... the peace of Remnant!" Adam was taken aback by Yang's words, and couldn't help but release a small giggle to it.

"What's so funny?" Yang asked.

"You're no Huntress. No Huntress or Huntsman ever becomes one to save the peace of Remnant. That's a joke." Yang had her reasons, but she wasn't ready to say them. She didn't want to. One part of her knew that, but the other didn't. One part fought for what she seeked, and the other simply just wanted to be.

"Look! If I said that I wanted to save you, then you would just tell me to leave."

"Good, we're on the same page. Now get lost!"

"No!" One of the boys grew even more irritated by their chatter, and charged towards her, suddenly, Yang remembered Qrow's words, "You breath, and then you analyze. Fighting Grimm isn't any different than running. You put one foot forward, then you put the next, and you give it your all." For some reason, Yang remembered Qrow to be quite intoxicated and had forgotten her multiple times when he said that. Yang took the advice anyway, for it was the only thing she had. The boy's fist came down, and Yang moved her head to the left, dodging, and countering with her own fist, which pulsated upon impact, sending the boy back. Yang looked at her fist, it was unscathed. Her hair was burning now, and her eyes were glowing. The boys shook in their spot at the sheer power Yang had just presented.

"Wait! He's the bad guy!" The boys tried to quell her anger.

"We didn't do anything wrong! He's the one who killed our friend! He's the one who attacked us first!"

"I know," Yang said.

"Then do what's right! You can't protect a criminal pest like him!"

"But he's a boy too!" Yang yelled out, stopping everyone in their tracks. Her voice boomed out, and everybody listened.

"He's just like you are! I know he did bad things in the past, but he had to, right?" Yang turned to Adam with worried eyes and asked again, "Right? You had someone you needed to protect, right?"

"Yeah. I did, and if I didn't do what I did, I might not have lived myself."

"So what? We had a friend too! And he's dead!" One of the boys said.

"This is different!" Adam replied.

"How? How is this any different? You're just being a selfish bastard!"

"This is different. But you understand," Adam turned towards Yang, "You've almost killed someone you've cared for, right?"

"Yeah."

"Then you know how hard it is. How hard it was for me to do the things I did, to risk our lives every day. You've never had to experience that, none of you Humans!"

"You rotten Faunus should all just go back to Menagerie!"

"Yang, I need you to leave, now." Adam had lost all his patience as well. He only had one thing he knew how to do to fix his problems, and above all else, he didn't want someone like Yang to see or get caught up in it.

"I don't have any more time to waste. I'm leaving, this town, and everybody here."

"Running away again? Like we'll let you do that." Adam grabbed something from his pocket, two vials, with red powder inside of them. Yang was confused as to what it was, but realized as Adam shook the vials in his hand that it was Dust. With his other hand, Adam grabbed a lighter, and opened it, setting the small flame ablaze.

"Get out of here," Adam whispered to Yang. She took notice of the situation, but before she could urge him to stop, he threw the vials, and the open lighter. He ran as fast as he could after throwing them, and Yang had no choice but to run for cover as well, her hair and eyes fading back into color. An explosion promptly occurred, setting the nearby forest ablaze, and even reaching the nearby town. An uproar occurred, and the citizens rushed out at the commotion. Yang and Adam were both safe.

"Yang." Adam was behind her, but her eyes were fixated on the fire before her.

"I want you to remember what you did today. The next time we meet, it'll be on the battle field, and we'll both be Huntsmen. The next time we meet, I want you to fight me with all you have, and throw away your pitiful Human morals." Adam paused, and waited for Yang to respond, but she didn't.

"I'm a Faunus. I want you to remember that. Today, you helped a criminal escape. Where's your justice now?" Adam left those as parting words, and ran into the forest as fast as he could. The only thing on Yang's mind as Qrow came running towards the fire and rushing towards Yang was that Adam was just simply another boy. Yang never considering him a Faunus, even when he had told her he was. To Yang, Adam was just Adam, and to Yang, every life deserved to live. Yang couldn't help but protect the life in front of her, giving herself a justification only suitable to such a rash and intrepid personality.


End file.
